Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Vincent Romaiello, "The Last Straw"

(photos: Vincent Romaniello)

Vincent Romaniello will be showing a new piece titled, “The Last Straw” (above) at Aqua 10 in Miami. Vincent wrote in his blog post that he’s been workiing with Trong Nguyen, from “Work of Art” fame and that Nguyen is “…totally professional” and “a really nice guy”.

I just saw these shows last Friday and enjoyed both. The newer work in "Letters" is interesting because Marden has chosen to compress his linear imagery with two bands of muted colors on both sides of the canvases, creating a tension not usually seen with his now iconic mark-making.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

I had a pretty short session in the studio this morning before having to leave for work. Lucky for me, the "Autumn Mixture" by Jeffrey Collins (above) made up for that bummed feeling of having to leave when I wasn't quite ready to.

Friday, November 12, 2010

It took a couple of months for Mauro Zamora and myself to nail down a day to swap studio visits, all due to our schedules not synching up for a few weeks. Things finally came together on a Saturday at the end of October. Both of us are in transitional phases with our work at the moment, (jumping off of cliffs is probably more like it) so the timing made the feedback between us that much more important, in my view.

The questioning and doubt that come along with living a creative life is heightened with painters because of our usually solitary work habits. Not only that, but one of my hard-core personality traits is a propensity to be alone. I can go a long time without being social. That alone makes it a good practice to get out of my space every now and then and experience someone else's, along with getting some feedback on my own work.

Being able see other artist's work spaces has always been a thrill for me. It is always good to see how other people deal with things like storage, how they organize their spaces and to see how they inhabit their work space. One of the best things about doing studio visits is being given the privilege to see work(s) that the outside world may or may not experience.

Mauro is currently preparing work for a solo exhibition at Rebekah Templeton here in Philadelphia in January, 2011

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Monday, November 08, 2010

On the same day that I visited Tremain Smith's studio, the last artist I had time to visit was Brenna K. Murphy. Brenna's work consists of integrating hair into photographs and other objects like the envelopes in the photos above.

According to her artist statement, Murphy says, "I am interested in the relationship between the ideal of Home and the body. In our culture we tend to think of our 'hometown' or the house we grew up in when we think of what Home means. Growing up without the presence of these things, I turned to the more personal and immediate to create my sense of Home: nuclear family, relationships with friends, and my own body. The development of my repetitive 'hair ritual' is indicative of how I have come to view my body as a surrogate Home, a way to connect these ideals with something physical and tangible."

Because of the delicate nature of her work, it's somewhat diffictult to photograph, hence the few shots here. Brenna K. Murphy's work is best seen in person and there are a couple of chances to do so right now: